Red Bull Upset About Mercedes’ Recent Dominance

The Aston Martin Red Bull team clearly miss the days when they used to dominate. Now, all they do is complain about Mercedes dominating the sport.

According to Red Bull motorsport advisor Dr Helmut Marko his team’s dominance was ended by regulation changes. However, rule changes have done little to slow down Mercedes at all.

This was evidenced by their fifth-straight one-two finish at the Spanish Grand Prix. At this point, if this is the precedent for the rest of the season, a sixth title double may be almost guaranteed.

Prior to Mercedes entering the fray, Red Bull had been rampaging to four straight doubles between 2010-2013. At that time, Sebastian Vettel was their golden boy as he stormed to victory in the drivers’ standings every year.

However, the V6 Hybrid era toppled them off the F1 Iron Throne, and Mercedes usurped them. The German manufacturer still remained a force to be reckoned with, when the 2017 changes took place.

Helmut Marko

Marko said, “It was alarming how much faster Mercedes were in the slow corners, and Monte Carlo consists almost entirely of slow corners,”

“We know where we are losing time. We are not generally slower, but we lose time in a few very specific, but just as significant, corners.

“When we were not nearly as dominant as them, there were two or three changes in the regulations each year to put us on hold. But nobody seems interested in that at the moment.”

Now, with an eye on Monaco, the Mercedes team are electing to refocus on cornerspeed and downforce. So, it can be safe to say that fans will prepare for a seventh 1-2 finish. However, Marko is confident that they can pose a threat, especially with Ferrari struggling.

“We take a step forward, but Mercedes seemingly two,” he said. “The basic direction is there, now we have to keep fighting.”

“But we are happy to have made the first step, we have placed in front of Ferrari, everything went well from Max, that was the maximum.”